The shore-to-ship project in the Free Port is a project that will continue to see this important commercial port for our country continue to work in the best possible way, it will be helping to protect the environment and reduce the inconvenience for the surrounding people.
The message from Minister for the Economy, European Funds and Lands Silvio Schembri when he visited the infrastructural works that started to be done related to this project. In fact, the excavation work has started and the barrels are being placed through which the cables will pass that will supply the electricity to the ships.
This project is estimated to cost around €12 million, financed by European funds and is expected to be completed by mid-2025. Both terminals, both South Quay of Terminal 1 and South Quay of Terminal 2 will be equipped for ships to turn off their engines and connect to the electrical grid system. This means that while there will be more clean air, there will be less inconvenience for the surrounding residents.
“This is another project promised by the Government that will have several benefits, primarily the environmental one where the emissions coming out of the ships’ engines will be drastically reduced because they are connecting directly to the electricity grid and therefore there will be much less emissions towards the bay of Birżebbuġa and its surroundings. In addition, the sound of the machines will be eliminated because they will be turned off until the work is underway to start the operation in the Freeport”, said Minister Silvio Schembri.
The Minister also recalled the Freeport squaring off project. An investment of around €104 million, which is Freeport’s first expansion in 20 years and will extend the North pier in Terminal Two by 176 meters and the West pier by 195 meters for a total of ‘ 30,000 square meters of new land, thus ensuring that the facility is suitable for new ships powered by LNG and the Freeport will be able to tie up these ships further outside the residential area, this while any possibility of placing cranes on West Quay Terminal 1 which is the quay closest to the residents has been removed.
The CEO of the Freeport Corporation David Magro said that the OPS project here has also taken off, and is moving at a good pace.
